Chapter 47: Godbane Flute
In the end, Xiao Nanfeng tossed all his stray thoughts aside. Still feeling a little unbalanced, he sat down and prepared to make up for his depletion of spiritual energy earlier in the day.
In truth, Xiao Nanfeng had already reached the Stellar Lake stage of spiritual cultivation, and the spiritual power he had provided to Yu'er was just a small fraction of what he possessed. Considering Yu'er's insistence, however, he could hardly refuse her.
As the sound of the flute rang out, a gentle and melodious tune suddenly enveloped the entire manor, and even toward its four walls. At the same time, the spiritual aether began to resonate and vibrate at an incredible rate, causing the resting disciples to gasp in surprise.
"Hm?" Xiao Nanfeng was so startled that he opened his eyes as well.
The fluctuations in the spiritual aether were far more intense than they should have been—almost an order of magnitude more than when Yu'er had played the guqin.
"What are you waiting for? Close your eyes!" Yu'er called out.
Xiao Nanfeng shut his eyes again, but he had clearly seen that a faint purple mist was emitted from the purple bamboo flute while Yu'er played it. The mist shone with rainbow light, gentle and soothing. The flute had to be an incredible relic.
Not only did the flute look mystical, it also produced an incredible effect. The closer one was to the flute, the greater the resulting spiritual fluctuations. Xiao Nanfeng felt as though a huge river of spiritual aether were flooding toward his forehead.
The stellar lake in Xiao Nanfeng's mindscape roiled. As the spiritual aether entered his forehead, Xiao Nanfeng's lake reached full capacity within moments.
He took a deep breath as he opened his eyes, and Yu'er stopped playing the flute.
"I only played for a little while—have you already recovered? This quickly?" Yu'er remarked in surprise.
Xiao Nanfeng: ...
He was silent for long moments before he asked, "Where did this flute come from? Why didn't you use it during the fight against Xiang Zhirou?"
"It's a treasure my mother left me, and she called it the Godbane Flute. I haven't ever shown it to anyone since entering the Taiqing sect—you're the first!" Yu'er replied happily. "As for the fight, you helped me out before I was able to pull it out."
"The Godbane Flute, you say? The fluctuations in the spiritual aether were almost as immense as when Master plays the guqin. This is a peerless treasure, one that you can't show others easily. What if they try to take it from you?" Xiao Nanfeng advised.
"I—I didn't think that far!" Yu'er blushed. "I simply wanted to help you."
She knew how important it was to keep treasures hidden, of course, and the Godbane Flute was a superlative treasure. Others would surely eye it, which was why she had never revealed it even on Taiqing Island. Today, however, she had been so touched by Xiao Nanfeng's support that she wanted to repay him as much as she could.
Xiao Nanfeng glanced all around him before noticing that the table was made of bamboo. He quickly broke it apart and picked out a relatively intact piece of bamboo, then whittled it masterfully with his dagger to produce a yellow flute.
"If the others ask about the flute, say that you were using this. If they don't believe you, ignore them." Xiao Nanfeng handed Yu'er the bamboo flute.
Yu'er fiddled with the flute happily. "I didn't know you were a craftsman! You're good enough to open up a flute shop and make a living that way."
"Stop laughing! There's no way I'd ever become a flute seller. As for you, make sure to keep that flute hidden!" Xiao Nanfeng huffed.
"That's easy! No one will be able to find it," Yu'er replied confidently. She stuck the flute down her collar, between her breasts.
Xiao Nanfeng gaped at her as she did so. It was certainly a... secure... hiding spot.
"Well? No one will be able to find it now, will they?" Yu'er grinned.
Xiao Nanfeng couldn't help glancing at her cleavage as he frowned. He murmured to himself, "How could it be? It's such a long flute—I don't see how you could have fit it down the front of your robes..."
Yu'er followed his gaze to her chest, then blushed. "No, no, it's not what you're thinking!"
"Ah?" Xiao Nanfeng still seemed perplexed.
Yu'er's blush deepened. "Well, it's not as though I intended to keep it hidden from you. Come on, have a look!"
"Have a look?" Xiao Nanfeng hesitated, shocked.
Yu'er pulled a necklace off her neck. The design was simple, but the pendant was exquisitely carved. When hung around her neck, the pendant was right above her chest.
"This is a treasure that my mother gave me. Keep it a secret," Yu'er said solemnly.
She flicked the pendant with her fingers, causing an imperceptible crack to open. A weak black haze appeared where its opening was located, and the faintest outline of the Godbane Flute could be seen. Yu'er plucked out the flute from that opening.
"Your pendant has a pocket space inside of it?" Xiao Nanfeng was shocked. He now understood where Yu'er had kept the flute.
"This is a storage pendant my mother gave to me, and I keep all my possessions within. No one else will discover it," Yu'er replied confidently.
Xiao Nanfeng carefully inspected the pendant. It was gold, with the image of a golden sunbird engraved on it.
"Haven't you seen such a pendant before? They're precious, but not all too rare. Many of the senior disciples in the sect have ones of their own," Yu'er explained.
"It's the first time I've heard of them." Xiao Nanfeng shook his head.
"I suppose most people would never have access to such trinkets," Yu'er replied affably. "My pendant has a cubic foot's worth of space, and I can put plenty of things inside."
"Aren't you afraid that I'll steal your storage pendant?" Xiao Nanfeng smiled.
"You're not other people, are you? I'd never tell the others. You're the first one I've shown it to."
"Does anyone in the sect have the ability to produce these storage pendants?" Xiao Nanfeng couldn't help asking. If the sect sold them, he would have to acquire one at any cost. They were simply far too convenient!
"Making one isn't difficult, but it requires an extremely rare material: inkglaze metal."
Xiao Nanfeng noted the name of the material, then asked, "How do you use such treasures?"
"Once you attune it to yourself, mark each item you want to place within with your spiritual power. When you want to take it out, simply pull it toward yourself using that spiritual mark."
"Attune?"
"The first time you use a storage pendant, you'll have to attune it to yourself with spiritual power. The larger the storage space, the greater the necessary power—but once the attunement is complete, it won't cost much spiritual power to access the space in the future."
"How miraculous..."
Considering how late it was at night, Yu'er stayed for just a while longer before she left. After all, they were two young adults of opposite sex, and it would be best to avoid any rumors.
The moment Yu'er left, Xiao Nanfeng pulled out a ring that he kept in an inner pocket.
This ring was something his father had given him when he was six, claiming it to be a token which his senior brothers in the Taiqing sect would recognize. Xiao Nanfeng, however, had joined the sect on his own merits, without having shown anyone the ring. He had kept it close at hand the entire time.
Yu'er had mentioned that many senior disciples of the sect had storage artifacts of their own. Could this token that his father left him be one too?
Xiao Nanfeng walked up to a candle and began inspecting the old-fashioned ring carefully.
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